West Charlton grower, Stuart Giles, may have preferred a little more luck with the weather at the start of the season, but couldn’t have been luckier when it came to buying canola seed.

Mr Giles is the Victorian winner of the Pacific Seeds/Elders canola competition sending four lucky customers on a study tour to Germany.

Growers buying four or more bags of Pacific Seeds ' canola from their local Elders branch this season were eligible to enter the competition.

Merchandise Manager and Senior Agronomist with Elders Wycheproof, Brendan Reinheimer said Mr Giles was a leading grower in the district, thoroughly researching his cropping choices and adopting new technology to improve productivity and continue leading sustainable dryland farming.

This year, he has sown canola, lupins, faba beans, chickpeas, oats and barley at ‘Nerrina Farms’, west of Charlton on some early rain. A little more rain is needed before he can finish sowing wheat and field peas.

Mr Giles purchased Rocket CL canola seed for the first time this season to plant 130 hectares of canola on fallow country. While it came up well, it is now being tested by frost.

The Clearfield variety was chosen to overcome any wild radish and ryegrass problems. Mr Giles is now hoping his luck rubs off on the season, so that he has all his crops in and coming along well by the time he flies out next month.